Japan Is Hot: Fund Net Inflows Highest Since 2007

By Teresa Rivas

Here’s another reading on the ferment in Japan’s stock market: Net inflows into Japanese mutual funds reached $10.83 billion last month, nearly a six-year high.

It marked the fifth straight month of net inflows for the investment vehicles known as toushin, as Reuterswrites, following bullish activity in recent months.

A representative of the Investment Trusts Association of Japan touted what he views as a shift in sentiment, telling reporters that he believes investors in the world’s eighth-largest mutual fund market have finished profit-taking and are now feeling more convinced about future gains.

Month-over-month, the overall asset value of mutual funds rose 2% to nearly 70 trillion yen, the ninth consecutive month of gains and the highest level seen since mid-2008.

Here in the U.S., when it comes to exchange-traded funds, WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund (DXJ) has been the biggest asset-gatherer in the entire ETF market this year, raising $3.3 billion. iShares MSCI Japan (EWJ) has also done well, pulling in $1.2 billion, according to research firm XTF.

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Chris Dieterich has covered the U.S. stock market for The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires. He is a graduate of Regis University and the Missouri School of Journalism.